For Oakland coach Francis, a profile in courage

Mar. 7, 2013

Written by

The fifth Summit League basketball tournament held in Sioux Falls will have more South Dakota flavor than ever before with South Dakota State holding the No. 1 seeds in the men’s and women’s divisions and the University of South Dakota making a double debut.

But those are hardly the only storylines in the 16-team, 14-game, four-day tournament that begins Saturday at the Arena. Some other stories of note:

Courageous coach

Oakland’s Beckie Francis made national headlines earlier this season, disclosing that her late father sexually abused her. The Colgate graduate and two-time Summit coach of the year was inspired to go public in light of the Jerry Sandusky situation at Penn State.

She then took things a step further by becoming an advocate for abuse victims, providing testimony for a Michigan bill aimed at creating age-appropriate education for kids and creating a game promotion aimed at raising awareness and funds.

Last month, Francis was given the Pat Summitt Most Courageous Award by the United States Basketball Writers Association, a bright spot in a difficult and injury plagued season for the eighth-seeded Golden Grizzlies (9-19). Preseason conference player of the year Bethany Watterworth has missed the entire campaign.

“No one wants to talk about the topic of sexual abuse,” Francis said on the OU website. “It’s uncomfortable. But that kind of reluctance is what we have to fight against. Sharing my story has made me free and I hope that sharing my story inspires others to tell and get help just like I did.”

Jaguars on the move

Three years ago this month, the IUPUI women’s program was being tagged with sanctions for NCAA rules violations, a situation that factored into the exit of coach Shann Hart. The Jaguars didn’t qualify for the conference tournament that season or the next.

Now, they’re in and holding the No. 2 seed – their best situation since 2006 – with two wins over four-time defending champion SDSU.

Former Purdue player and IUPUI men’s assistant Austin Parkinson has turned things around in a hurry.

(Page 2 of 2)

“Our kids probably get tired of me talking about the South Dakota State women’s program and about how they do things right all the time,” he said after a win at Frost Arena, the Jags’ first victory in the series. “You can’t flip that switch.”

Running out of time

Another year, another departure from the Summit League. Kansas City will follow Centenary (2011) and Southern Utah and Oral Roberts (2012) out the conference door, announcing recently that it will move to the reshuffled Western Athletic Conference effective this summer.

The Kangaroos joined the Summit in 1997 and have yet to win a tourney title in men’s or women’s play. The Kansas City men – 8-23 overall and seeded sixth – haven’t won a tournament game since 2007, failing to qualify in 2009 and 2012.

The women have finished second twice, falling in overtime in the title tilt last year. They’re the No. 7 seed in the first season under coach Marsha Frese, sister of Maryland coach Brenda Frese.

NBA interest up

The Summit League has produced two NBA draft picks in the last five years: IUPUI guard George Hill and Oakland center Keith Benson.

This week, the NBA turnout this week will resume, as 19 reps from 15 teams have confirmed plans to scout the tournament, according to the league office.

The primary prospect in the Summit senior class: SDSU point guard Nate Wolters, who is on track to average at least 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists for the second season in a row. No NCAA Division I player has done that since assists became an official stat in 1983-84. The senior Wolters remains in the running for the Bob Cousy Award (best point guard), the James Naismith Award (best player) and the Lou Henson Award (best mid-major player).

Fast and slow

For as close as they were in the standings, the top four seeds on the men’s side are worlds apart in terms of style.

Regular season co-champion Western Illinois ranks 347th in NCAA Division I – that’s dead last – in possessions per game at 59.1. No. 3-seed North Dakota State ranks 333rd at 62.7 possessions per game, down almost six from last season. Both the Leathernecks and the Bison are in the top 10 in scoring defense.

Meanwhile, top seed SDSU and No. 4 Oakland rank in the top 50 in scoring offense and boast two of the most prolific individuals in the country in Wolters and junior sharpshooter Travis Bader, respectively.

Wolters is fourth nationally at 22.8 points per game, while Bader is fifth at 22.3. The pair has also turned in the two highest single-game outputs in D-I this season at 53 and 47 points.

“I do think we’re a team that likes to score,” OU coach Greg Kampe said after a regular-season visit to Brookings. “I think that those are the types of teams that win the Summit League. In all the years I’ve been here, I can’t remember a slow, deliberate team that’s won the Summit. It’s usually teams that score the ball.”